Cell migration is impaired in XPA-deficient cells.

Xeroderma pigmentosum (XP) is a hereditary disorder characterized by photosensitivity, predisposition to skin cancers, and neurological abnormalities including microcephaly and progressive neurodegeneration. A lack of nucleotide excision repair (NER) in patients with XP can cause hypersensitivity to the sun, leading to skin cancer, whereas the etiology of the neuronal symptoms of XP remains ambiguous. There are various neurological disorders that perturb neuronal migration, causing mislocalization and disorganization of the cortical lamination. Here, we investigated the role of the XP group-A (Xpa) gene in directed cell migration. First, we adopted an in utero electroporation method to transduce shRNA vectors into the murine embryonic cerebral cortex for the in vivo knockdown of Xpa. Xpa-knockdown neurons in the embryonic cerebral cortex showed abnormal cell migration, cell cycle exit, and differentiation. The genotype-phenotype relationship between the lack of XPA and cell migration abnormalities was confirmed using both a scratch assay and time-lapse microscopy in XP-A patient-derived fibroblasts. Unlike healthy cells, these cells showed impairment in overall mobility and the direction of motility. Therefore, abnormal cell migration may explain neural tissue abnormalities in patients with XP-A.

Severe and delayed-onset acneiform eruptions as an adverse reaction to regorafenib.

Regorafenib is an oral multikinase inhibitor targeting several tyrosine kinase receptors including BRAF and epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and is approved as a third-line treatment for metastatic gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST). While acneiform eruptions have been observed in patients receiving other BRAF and EGFR inhibitors, the commonly reported adverse reactions to regorafenib are fatigue and palmar-plantar erythrodysesthesia. Herein, we report, to the best of our knowledge, the first case who presented with a severe acneiform eruption 24 months after beginning regorafenib for the treatment of GIST. A 61-year-old woman developed GIST with multiple liver metastases, and she was treated with imatinib and sunitinib. However, these therapies were discontinued, and regorafenib was administered. Twenty-four months after beginning regorafenib, she developed an acneiform eruption on her back. Histopathologic analysis of a skin biopsy from the back revealed neutrophilic suppurative folliculitis. Therefore, she postponed regorafenib administration for 2 months and was treated with topical application of clindamycin phosphate hydrate, which was effective. Consistent with reported evidence that the presence of acneiform eruption and the efficacy of EGFR inhibitors are positively associated, regorafenib had good anticancer activity in our patient. Ultimately, we found that although regorafenib- associated skin toxicities usually appear within 1 month of treatment, patients potentially can present with delayed-onset acneiform eruptions even 24 months later.

NUMB as a Therapeutic Target for Melanoma.

The upregulation of the adaptor protein NUMB triggers melanocytic differentiation from multipotent skin stem cells, which share many properties with aggressive melanoma cells. Although NUMB acts as a tumor suppressor in various human cancer types, little is known about its role in melanoma. In this study, we investigated the role of NUMB in melanoma progression and its regulatory mechanism. Analysis of The Cancer Genome Atlas melanoma datasets revealed that high NUMB expression in melanoma tissues correlates with improved patient survival. Moreover, NUMB expression is downregulated in metastatic melanoma cells. NUMB knockdown significantly increased the invasion potential of melanoma cells in a three-dimensional collagen matrix in vitro and in the lungs of a mouse model in vivo; it also significantly upregulated the expression of the NOTCH target gene CCNE. Previous studies suggested that Wnt signaling increases NUMB expression. By mimicking Wnt stimulation through glycogen synthase kinase-3 inhibition, we increased NUMB expression in melanoma cells. Furthermore, a glycogen synthase kinase-3 inhibitor reduced the invasion of melanoma cells in a NUMB-dependent manner. Together, our results suggest that NUMB suppresses invasion and metastasis in melanoma, potentially through its regulation of the NOTCH‒CCNE axis and that the inhibitors that upregulate NUMB can exert therapeutic effects in melanoma.

Induced pluripotent stem cell-derived melanocyte precursor cells undergoing differentiation into melanocytes.

Induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) technology offers a novel approach for conversion of human primary fibroblasts into melanocytes. During attempts to explore various protocols for differentiation of iPSCs into melanocytes, we found a distinct and self-renewing cell lineage that could differentiate into melanocytes, named as melanocyte precursor cells (MPCs). The MPCs exhibited a morphology distinctive from that of melanocytes, in lacking either the melanosomal structure or the melanocyte-specific marker genes MITF, TYR, and SOX10. In addition, gene expression studies in the MPCs showed high-level expression of WNT5A, ROR2, which are non-canonical WNT pathway markers, and its related receptor TGFßR2. In contrast, MPC differentiation into melanocytes was achieved by activating the canonical WNT pathway using the GSK3ß inhibitor. Our data demonstrated the distinct characteristic of MPCs' ability to differentiate into melanocytes, and the underlying mechanism of interfacing between canonical WNT signaling pathway and non-canonical WNT signaling pathway.

Inflammation Due to Voriconazole-induced Photosensitivity Enhanced Skin Phototumorigenesis in Xpa-knockout Mice.

Voriconazole is an antifungal agent and used as a prophylactic measure, especially in immunocompromised patients. However, there have been several reports of its adverse reactions, namely photosensitivity with intense inflammatory rashes and subsequent skin cancer development. To assess the effects of photosensitizing drugs voriconazole and hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ) on the enhancement of UV-induced inflammatory responses and UV-induced tumorigenesis, we utilized Xpa-knockout mice, which is DNA repair-deficient and more susceptible to UV-induced inflammation and tumor development than wild-type mice. Administration of voriconazole prior to broadband UVB exposure significantly upregulated multiple inflammatory cytokines compared with the vehicle- or HCTZ-administered groups. Voriconazole administration along with chronic UVB exposure produced significantly higher number of skin tumors than HCTZ or vehicle in Xpa-knockout mice. Furthermore, the investigation of UVB-induced DNA damage using embryonic fibroblasts of Xpa-knockout mice revealed a significantly higher 8-oxo-7,8-dihydroguanine level in cells treated with voriconazole N-oxide, a voriconazole-metabolite during UV exposure. The data suggest that voriconazole plus UVB-induced inflammatory response may be related to voriconazole-induced skin phototumorigenesis.

CXCL1 Inhibition Regulates UVB-Induced Skin Inflammation and Tumorigenesis in Xpa-Deficient Mice.

Xeroderma pigmentosum complementation group A is a hereditary disease characterized by early onset of skin cancers and freckle-like pigmented maculae in sun-exposed sites. Although the etiology of the predisposition to UVR-induced skin tumors in xeroderma pigmentosum complementation group A is well investigated as a repair deficiency in UVR-induced DNA damage, the mechanism of exaggerated sunburn in patients with xeroderma pigmentosum complementation group A and whether UVR-induced inflammation relates to a skin tumor-prone phenotype remains to be elucidated. Using gene profiling of xeroderma pigmentosum complementation group A model mice, Xpa-deficient mice, we found that expression of CXCL1 in the skin and blood of Xpa-deficient mice increased significantly after UVB exposure over even a limited area compared with that of wild-type mice. We administered CXCL1 neutralizing antibody or the antioxidant agent, N-acetylcysteine, to Xpa-deficient mice after UVB irradiation and found significant suppression of blood levels of CXCL1, ear swelling and erythema, the hallmarks of inflammation and neutrophil chemotaxis. Xpa-deficient mice treated with chronic UVB exposure plus administration of CXCL1 neutralizing antibody or N-acetylcysteine yielded many fewer skin tumors compared with the control group. This indicates that the UVB-induced strong inflammatory response of Xpa-deficient mice plays a role in skin tumor development, which could be suppressed by regulating chemokines such as CXCL1.